Game apparatus.



J. P KEENAN. GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 22, 1914.

Patented Sept. 22, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

' Mas/1 e/a J. P. KEENAN.

GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 22, 1914.

. l. 1 1 1,592. Patented Sept. 22, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET Z.

61M 4% www.

r all whomit may concern:

STATES PATEN onnIcEE.

cosnrn r. KEENAN, or w arnanonr, connnc'rrcnr.

' GAME nr'rnmrcs.

Specification Be it known that I, Josnrn P. Knnnan, a

w citizen of the UnitedStates, and-a resident of Waterbury, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus, which im rovements are fully set forth in the followmg'specification.

' Thisinvention relates to improvements in game apparatus, and more particularly to sine apparatus of that type commonly own as bowlin or ten-pin alleys.

.Theohject oft is invention is'to provide a game apparatus of the character above named which shall be 'simple and comparatively inexpensive as regards its construction; durable, eificient and reliable in practical service which shall be available in the ,playing-for purposes, of .manual exercise, amus ement,' or otherwise, and without the aid of an attendant for resettin the severalpins made-use ofof a game e osely approximating that commonly known as a Figure l. is a fragmentary plan view of a game apparatus embodying 111 said imrcvements, the several pins ma e use of bemg depressed, Fig. 2 is a vertical, longitu-- dinal section of. same, as along the broken line of Fig. 1. F1 3 is a view show ing in perspectlve and etached one of,,the pi'n-su porting frames made .use ofathe scale eing enlarged. Fig. 4; is a vertical transverse section, as alon the broken line y-y of Fig. 1, certain of t e ins made use of occupying, each its upstan ing position.

Fig. 5 1s a plan view of the general inresetting mechanism, detached. Fig. 6 1s a view similar to Fi 2, the pin-resetting mechanism having een manipulated in a manner to cause thepin shown thereabove to measurably undergo its upward swinging movement, the scale eing enlarged. ,Fig. 7

Application m April 22,

Letterflatent- Patented Sept. 22, mm. 1914. Serial No. 833,592.

is a view showing in perspective and detached one ofthe pins made use of.

drawings, wherein similarreference-characters denote like parts throughout the several tion, of a duly supported bed or play-floor 2, within which is seated, with its top surface flush with the top surface of said play-floor, a pin-supporting frame 2', said frame being duly secured in position by means of suitable fasteners, as the screws 2".

The frame 2 has an opening 3 formed therein, and relatively to sa1d opening swingingly operates a'pin 3'. Morespeciflsite points 3", 3. 'Also, pin 3 has a shown, which play surface registers flush with the top surface of the frame 2, when the pin 3 is depressed, as'indicated' in Figs. '1 and 2 of the drawings. By preference, the

our to the general contour of the opening three, measurably operates therein, and when depressed, as above stated, closes the same, as will be clearly understood.

When occupying its upstanding position, the pin 3' preferably inclinessomewhat forcated in Fig. 2, thereby making it needless to provide any part or medium for restraining said pin against any tendency thereof to casually return to its depressed position means, as the minor seat 4, be provided for sustaining the free end portion of the pin 3, when depressed, and whereby movement of the pin downwardly shall be checked when the play surface thereof comes into registry flush with the top surface of the frame 2', as will also be clearly understood.

proved game apparatus, the player, standing suitably in advance of the pin 3, forcibly delivers thereat a ball orv spherical object 4, with the purpose of having the same engage, depress and pass beyond said pin, said object rollin along the bed 2 in the direction indicate by the arrow in Fig. l, and all mainly as in common practice in playing the game commonly known as bowling or tenpins; and in the event that the spherical object aforenamed does engage, depress and views I make use, in carrying out my invenx active or play surface substantially as In the practical operation of my im'' Having reference to the accompanying cally, and as here shown, the pin 3' is hingedly attached to the frame 2 as at the opgoin aforenamed conforms in perimetric conwardly with respect to the bed 2, as 'indiaforenamed. In practice it is desirable that pass beyond the pin 3', it becomes desirable that said pin shall be reset or returnedto its upright position. To accomplish this latter end without the aid of a youth or attendant, I make use of a novel resetting mechanism which will now be described.

4 denotes a pin-resetting arm, situated beneath the pin 3, swingingly operating, under stress duly applied thereto, on a pivot 5, projecting more or less upwardly from the latter, and whose free end plies within an arc of swinging movement which intersects and mainly but not wholly lies within, the arc of swinging movement of the pin aforenamed, all as clearly indicated in Fig. 6; and whereby, under direct movement of said arm, its free end engages said pin, when depressed, and causes it to swing into its upright position, (see Fig. 4), where it is left upon said arm being revers'ely moved or re- I tracted, as m a manner to cause it to assume its normal position of rest, (see Fig. 2).. In thls instance the arm 4:" has its lower end pivotally positioned and held between the opposite side-members of a duly supported, upstanding clip 5, but the same may be otherwise disposed.

y appropriate medium may be availed.

of for manipulating and generally controlling the arm 4", thou h in this connectionl prefer making use 0 a longitudinally reciprocating rack, embodying opposite sidepieces 5 5', firmly connected byan ad: vance transverse tie-member 6, and, by preference, a rear transverse tle-membcr G. Sa1d rack surrounds the pin 3', and may be shiftably supported in osition for service'in any common and well own manner, the same, however being, in this instance, measurably thus supported by the arm 4", indirectly through the medium of a transverse rod 6 the latter engaging at its opposite ends the,

opgosite side-pieces 5" 5", and intersecting an extending through the arm aforenamed, as at a point suita ly removed upwardly from the axis of swinging movement thereof.

The rod 6" may be disposed either fixedly or freely with respect to the arm 4" or the opposite side-pieces 5 5", but in any event its disposition relatively tothcse parts, or

' any thereof, should be such as to insure,

under direct or reverse longitudinal movement of the rack aforenamed, a correlative swinging action on the part of said arm.

The rack aforenamed is preferably rovided with a flexible connection 7 w 1ich may lead to any desired point, as forwardly alon the bed 2, and th'roughthe medium of whi connection direct movement of said rack may, for the purpose hereinbefore exlainecl,be convemently efi'ected, said rack I ing caused to automatically undel'go its reverse movement through the medium of ;any common and well known expedient, as the contractile spring 7 here shown as connected at one of its ends to the tie-member in conjunction indirectly with the arm 4' said rack tends, at all times under the impulse of its controlling/spring 7", to assume and occupy its normal position of rest, as

clearly indicated in Fig. 2.

While any. ap ropriate structure may be employed for d y supporting the foregoing resetting mechanism, it is my purpose to provide a sub-frame therefor, which subframe consists of opposite side-elements 8" 8"", firmly connected by front and rear end- 'sections 9, 9', there being arranged longitudinally within said sub-frame an upstanding partition 9", at a suitable point along the upper ed e of which may. be positioned and secured t e clip 5', as clearly shown in the drawings, the sub-frame aforenamed generally underlying he pin-resetting mechanism aforenamed. ,To the end that my improved game apparatus ma be more fully applied to the playing 0 a game closely approximating that commonly known as bowling or ten-pins, having, collectively, the common general triangular arhereinbefore explain by a pin-supporting frame 2, and each f the plurality of the latter made use of, together with each of said pins, being, in all essential details of rangement, each s\p1ported, pivotally asv construction and disposition, the counter-' part of its neighbor or neighbors.

I further make use of a corresponding plurality of pin-resetting arms 4", one for cooperation with each of the pins 3', and surrounded collectively by the longitudinally movable rack aforenamed, the latter being provided with an appropriate number of upstanding, longitudinal partitions .9", suitably spaced apart, and serving, each to sup ort one or more of the clips 5, a suitable urality of the latter bein availed of, one. or cooperation of each of t e arms 4". Again, the rack aforenamed is provided with an appro riate number of transverse rods 6", each or coiiperation, as hereinbefore explained, with one, two, or more of the arms 4", accordingly as the same may stand as a unit, or as elements of a transverse series or row thereof, as will be readily understood. Hence, where the above mul-- tiple form of my improved apparatus is availed of, upon the rack aforenamed being moved forwardly, as hereinbefore explained,

the several arms 4: will be caused to swing upwardly in unison, with the result that the several pins 3' made use of, will also be nausea caused to swin upwardly in unison, each of said arms taking with it the v in situated thereabove; and upon said rac being retracted, as through the medium of its controlling spring 7", said pins will each occupy and remain in its upstanding position. Now, upon a play being made by a player, such pin or pins as he may succeed in knocking down or depressing, may be readily reset in the manner'above defined.

It will be seen that my improved game apparatusis well adapted for the purposes for which it is intended, and further that the same may be modified to a considerable extent, without .materially departing from the scope of the claims hereto appended.

I claim:

.1. A ame apparatus comprising a bed q and a pm, the latter being so arranged on the former as to'be capable of movement I from a substantially vertical position to, a

horizontal position, and vice versa, having a flat play surface, and, when occupying its horizontal position, having its said play surface flush with the top surface of said bed.

2. "A game apparatus comprising a bed, a

pin-supporting frame depressed therein, the

top surfaces of said bed and frame registering, each flush with the other, and a pm, the latter bein so supported by said frame as to be capab e of undergoing movement from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, and vice versa, having a flat play surface, and, when occupying its horizontal position, havin its said play surface flush with thetop sur ace of said frame.

. 3. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a pin, the latter-so arranged on the former as to be capable of movement from a substantially vertical. position to a horizontal position, in registry with said bedv and pin-resetting mechanism, whereby said pin may be reset or returned to its said vertical posit-ion.

4. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a pin, the latter so arranged on the former as to be capable of movement from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, in registry with said bed, and pin-resetting mechanism, the. latter affording an arm arranged beneath, and whose free end-portion is movable into and out ofthe arc of movement of the pin aforenamed, and whereby said pin may be reset or returned to its said vertical position.

i 5. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a pin, the latter so arranged on the former as to be capable of movement from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, in registry with said bed, and pin-resetting mechanism, whereby said pin may be reset or returnedtoits vertioah position, said mechanism comprising an arm arranged beneath, and whose free end-portion is movable duly into and out of the ,arc of I movement of the pin aforenamed, and a rack whereby said arm may be duly actuated, said rack being freely conjoined with said arm.

6. A game apparatus comprisin a bed and a pm, the latter so arrange onthe former as to be capable of movement'from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, in registry with said had, and pineresetting mechanism, whereby said pin may be reset or returned to its vertical position, said mechanism comprising an arm arranged beneath, and whose free end-porof movement'of the pin aforenamed, and a rack whereby said arm may be duly actuated, saidrack affording a connection leading to a point distant therefrom.

7. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a pin, the latter so arranged on the former as to be capable of movement from a substantially vertical position to a horizonal p sit n, in registry with said bed, an

- tion is movable duly into and out of the are so pin-resetting mechanism, whereby said pin may be reset or returned to its vertical position, said mechanism comprising an arm arranged beneath, and whose free. end-portion is movable duly into and out of the arc of movement of the pin afdrenamed, a rack freely conjoined with the arm aforenamed, a connection leading from said rack to a point distant therefrom, and whereby the same may be directly actuated, and means for yielding efiecting automatically ,2. return movement of said rack upon the connection .aforenamed being freed from stress.

8. A game apparatus comprising a bed and apin, the latter so arranged on the inc former as to be capable of movement from and pin-resetting mechanism, whereby said pin may be reset or returned to its vertical position, said mechanism comprising an arm pivotally disposed beneath, and whose free end-portion is movable duly into and out of the arc of movement of the in aforenamed a rack surrounding and reely conjoined with the arm aforenamed, a flexible connection leading from said rack to a point distant therefrom and whereby the same may be directly actuated, and an elastic element, the latter exerting at all times an elastic force on said rack, to correspondingly hold the same retracted, or in its normal position of rest.

9. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a plurality of pins the latter collectively arranged on said bed and movable, all in one and the same direction, and each from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, in registry with the bed aforenamed.

10. A game apparatus comprising a bed and a plurality of pins the latter collectively one and the same direction, and each from.

I "a substantially vertical position to a horito a horizontal position, in registry with the zontal position, in registry with the bed .-aforenamed, and pin-resetting mechanism, ,whereby any one of said pins, or any numberthereof collectively and in unison, when depressed, may be reset or returned to a substantially vertical position relatively to the bed.

11; A game apparatus com rising a bed, a plurality of pin-supporting rames, the latter depressed, respectively, within said bed, and a like plurality of-pins, one supported byeach of said frames, said pins being movable, all in one and the same direction, and.

each from a substantially vertical position frame which-supports it.

12.--A game apparatus com rising a bed, a

plurality of pin-supporting rames, the latter depressed, respectively, within said bed, a like plurality of pins, one su ported by each of said frames, said pins ing movable, all in one and the same direction, and each from a substantially vertical position to a horizontal position, in re istry with the frame which supports it, an pin-resetting mechanism, whereby any oneof said pins, or any number thereof. collectively and in unison, when depressed, may-be reset or returned. to a substantially vertical position relatively to the bed.

13. For a game apparatus of the class herein described, a pin-supporting, flat frame pivotally supporting a flat pm, the latter adapted to swing into and out ofregistry with said frame.

. JOSEPH P. KEENAN.

Witnesses Gm; S. HYNES, FRED W. LAwLnR. 

